Musician's thread?

[Ziggy]

If you blew your sound card up, then you plugged the wrong thing into the wrong thing. A headphones output is safe to plug into the line in on a sound card. Hmm, I guess you could maybe drive it too hard. But any time your doing something like this you wanna make sure the level or gain isn't up too high. Computers doesn't have that little red light, but it's in the sound mixing settings some where.

Plugging something into the headphones jack on a guitar amp usually kills the speaker, but not always. I actually have an old Marshall combo that has a headphones/line out jack. Plugging something into it does not effect the speaker. Some amps have an actual line out, and not a headphones out, so that would be preferred. But if you're using the headphones as a line out, you'd be able to listen to your guitar through your PC speakers as you're recording.

USB interfaces are great. I have this one:

http://tascam.com/product/us-200/overview/

Comes with Cubase LE for free. Most USB devices like that will come with some free software to use. Cubase is alright, but I'm still using Audition. Here's something I did with that Tascam and Audition for example:

Tooth Ache Song

Warning: This was a quick and dirty improv that I did when I first got the Tascam, I just wanted something to do to mess around with it.

A USB interface will yield better results, and allow you to do more. The above recording, the guitars and bass were recording direct into the Tascam (no mics). Also, it gives you the ability to use an XLR input which PC sounds card obviously don't have.

But using the line in or mic in on a PC's sound card is perfectly fine for quick recordings. If the line in isn't working out for ya for whatever reason, you can just use a cheap PC mic. They don't all suck as bad as you would think. There's this one that use to come with Dell PCs...

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Dell-Black-Plug ... 484f8b87db

They're actually REALLY good for what they are. They sound very decent. If you're not looking to spend any money, that's what I would do. Otherwise, the USB interfaces are awesome, and an SM57 is about $90 (or less if you buy one used).

[dunpeal2064]

Well, my amp does kill output when something is plugged into the headphone jack. I think I only have a Line In on the amp, no Line Out, so I'll have to just try it with the headphone output.

So, since I'm a total music noob, I am not sure what these usb interfaces are. Would I just digitaly record to the usb interface, manage the recording on the interface, and then export to a pc? That could be pretty handy!

As for a pc mic, that vocal recording mic that came with that ProTools I believe is a pc mic. The weird thing is, it plugs in through usb, but kills all audio. If I want to hear what I am recording, I have to plug headphones into the mic itself.

Also... how does "pushing your amp" come through when digitally recording? I don't know what to call it

[SpoonyBard]

USB interfaces are great. I have this one

I have an older US-144 and a ton of portastudios. I love Tascam. Reliable stuff and really affordable on the consumer end.

So, since I'm a total music noob, I am not sure what these usb interfaces are. Would I just digitaly record to the usb interface, manage the recording on the interface, and then export to a pc? That could be pretty handy!

A USB interface is basically anything that connects your guitar to your computer. It can be something simple like the Tascam-200 listed above (which works great for one or two people at a time) or something more like a Samson L1200 (which is great for recording a whole band or doing live sound).

It's basically a box that allows you to equalize the signal in real time while you send it to a PC. Most of any actual editing you'll be doing will be on the PC.

You can get standalone devices as well, like a Zoom R16 that allows you to do the editing on the unit itself.

There's a million different options out there for home computer recording. It's hard to keep up with it all.

[Ziggy]

So, since I'm a total music noob, I am not sure what these usb interfaces are. Would I just digitaly record to the usb interface, manage the recording on the interface, and then export to a pc? That could be pretty handy!

Think of the USB interface as a sound card that plugs in to your computer via USB. It's pretty much a glorified sound card, tailored to us aspiring rock stars. It just interfaces your input (mic, guitar, whatever) with your PC. You use software (Pro Tools, Cubase, Audacity, etc) to do the recording.

As for a pc mic, that vocal recording mic that came with that ProTools I believe is a pc mic. The weird thing is, it plugs in through usb, but kills all audio. If I want to hear what I am recording, I have to plug headphones into the mic itself.

That's... throw that thing in the garbage!

Sounds like the mic has its own built in "sound card" if you will. And it sounds like when you plug it in, it takes default to your PC's sound card. That Dell mic I linked, for the $5, that thing is totally worth it. If you wanted to just go a cheap route, use that Dell mic with Audacity and you'll be all set, and your recordings wont sound bad at all.

Also... how does "pushing your amp" come through when digitally recording? I don't know what to call it

Ideally, when micing an amp, the recording will sound exactly like it did live, or very close to it. If you use a line out or headphones out from a guitar amp, it will not sound the same (and some times VERY different). The Blackstar amp I bought for my brother has a "emulated line out" that I've been meaning to check out, it's suppose to be great for recording. Says Blackstar, at least. But every other line out I've heard from guitar amps didn't sound at all like the speaker.

[dunpeal2064]

Well, it sounds like I'll need to mic my amp then. Some of the stuff I've come up with relys on the amp going crazy when, for example, I hit 2 notes a half-step away from each other, and then bend in and out of pitch. (If that makes sense)

[SamuraiMegas]

I used to play trumpet and I was OK, though I didn;t pay any attention in band class. I tried to get kicked out because my mom made me do band and I hated it.
Other than that I do some (kind of ok) DJ'ing and make Chiptunes.

[AppleQueso]

There was a presounus firestudio at a pawn shop nearby that I was tempted to pick up. Haven't messed with recording in a long time though.

Currently I just have an SM57, some cheap mixer, and an M-Audio 2496 sound card.

[fvgazi]

Well, my amp does kill output when something is plugged into the headphone jack. I think I only have a Line In on the amp, no Line Out, so I'll have to just try it with the headphone output.
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Also... how does "pushing your amp" come through when digitally recording? I don't know what to call it

Look for a "Preamp Out". This will provide line level signal and your tone controls will still work. Also can be labeled as "Line Out". DO NOT PLUG THE POWER SECTION OF THE AMP INTO LINE LEVEL DEVICES. This will most likely destroy them. Thankfully... there really is no way to do this unless you unhook speakers and run the amp directly from where they connect. If you have a tube(valve for UK peeps) amp, not only will this destroy what you plug into, it will "overload" your tube amp and be a costly repair.

"Pushing the amp" - You mean clipping? This depends on your preference. If you have a tube amp - saturation is desirable as tube overdrive is rich with harmonics (and softer) than diode and transistor clipping (although desirable for certain purposes). This doesn't count if your input level for the recording device is clipping it... which sounds awful.

The Blackstar amp I bought for my brother has a "emulated line out" that I've been meaning to check out, it's suppose to be great for recording. Says Blackstar, at least. But every other line out I've heard from guitar amps didn't sound at all like the speaker.

That's basically a direct out if I remember correctly. Many engineers use a mix of that plus mic'd speakers when recording bass. It's also really handy for acoustic guitar being amplified. Personally, I think the speakers add a lot of color to the sound and give character to recordings. It's also good if you're in a situation where you can't make a ton of noise .

[dunpeal2064]

"Pushing the amp" - You mean clipping? This depends on your preference. If you have a tube amp - saturation is desirable as tube overdrive is rich with harmonics (and softer) than diode and transistor clipping (although desirable for certain purposes). This doesn't count if your input level for the recording device is clipping it... which sounds awful.

I'm not really sure what its called, I'm still new to this stuff. When I play two notes a half-step apart and let both ring out, it sort of sounds like a Rotary effect that I can control by bending closer to and further from the higher note.

My amp is odd, its a Vox Valvetronix, so I think it has a tube pre-amp, and something to amplify that tube sound while distorting it as little as possible. Its a 40 Watt amp, but can go up to 60 Watts, apparently?

[fvgazi]

I'm not really sure what its called, I'm still new to this stuff. When I play two notes a half-step apart and let both ring out, it sort of sounds like a Rotary effect that I can control by bending closer to and further from the higher note.

My amp is odd, its a Vox Valvetronix, so I think it has a tube pre-amp, and something to amplify that tube sound while distorting it as little as possible. Its a 40 Watt amp, but can go up to 60 Watts, apparently?

What you're describing is how the notes interact acoustically. Guitar is just a bunch of Sin waves added upon each other. When the two frequencies overlap, they "hit" each other at specific points creating that effect. I'm not really into music theory too much, but the half-step chord is commonly used in a lot of stoner-doom and noise rock. Sometimes when you play it in a high register it has been known as "horror chords" due to the shrieking nature of it. Augmented and Diminished chord structures use the half-step a lot.

The intro to Iron Man by Black Sabbath is achieved exactly by what you described except i think it's a Root + 5th -> 6th instead of Root and 2nd-3rd.
//yet another edit - If you tune your guitar with 5th + 7th fret harmonics you need this effect to tell when you're in tune. If there is a lot of oscillation, you need to tune it until the notes are identical!

Yeah the Valvetronix has a tube preamp section. The power section is transistors - Much like the Marshall Valve States, however your Vox should have digital modeling. I don't get why these amp companies bother sticking in a tube preamp with digital modeling. Just model the preamp section too and save the customer some money and the cost of a HT winding in the power transformer. 99% of the time people refer to "tube tone", they are talking about preamp overdrive anyway. You have to play a tube amp LOUD to saturate power tubes. Supposedly they sound "pretty accurate" to what they are copying. Again - not sure why they bother with the power switching options in a digital amp. That works great when you have power tubes that you want to operate in triode mode and saturate earlier with less volume cranked. Makes no difference with transistors(almost none.. there is to an extent) and 1's + 0's.

Personally, I can't stand the whole digital thing. Maybe because I'm do amp tech work? Any time I get one of those suckers in, I worry about proprietary parts and if I'm actually going to be able to work on it. Not to mention the Line 6 Spideramps I've worked on sound like dogshit.